Other such sources include diesel generators for temporary power generation in cities, traffic congestion, and unregulated small industries.įigure 2: Average percent contributions of major sources to PM 10 pollution as per CPCB inventory (Source: Guttikunda et al, 2014)įigure3: There are many unregulated and unaccounted sources of pollution such as landfill, brick kilns, loose soil and waste dumping, biomass burning for cooking using chulhas, dry uncovered surface along the roadside, and traffic congestion (Source: Kumar et al, 2015)Īccording to CPCB annual report 2015-16, out of the 46 million-plus population cities in India, 8 cities (18%) and 38 cities (86%) exceed the NAAQS with respect to NO 2and PM 10 respectively in the residential/industrial/rural/commercial areas. The local emission inventories point to about 53 tons yr−1 of PM 10 and PM 2.5 release from waste burning in Delhi, respectively, while the corresponding emissions from construction are 3250 and 10,750 tons yr−1 (Guttikunda and Goel, 2013). Examples include production of brick kilns that use raw wood, agricultural waste or poor quality coal used as a fuel, the roadside burning of organic and plastic waste, cooking that involves the burning of solid biomass or cow dung and the unintentional burning of municipal solid waste at landfills, and construction activities (Kumar et al, 2015) (Figure 3). Air pollutants can be natural or may be the result of various anthropogenic activities. Conventional sources of air pollution include vehicular emissions, coal-based power plants, fossil fuel consumption in industries and some agricultural activities such as fertilizer application and farm fires.

Sources of Air pollution Emissions in IndiaĪ diverse range of pollution sources co-exists in urban environments. Primary pollutants such as CO, NOx and SO 2 are directly emitted from the source while secondary pollutants such as ozone and some aerosols are formed in the atmosphere. Further, the air pollutants can be primary or secondary depending upon their formation mechanism (CPCB, 2006).

These are known as “criteria” air pollutants (EPA, 2015). Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has established National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for some of the most common air pollutants which are mainly particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), ground-level ozone, nitrogen dioxide (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO 2) and lead. In a recent World Air Quality 2018 report released by IQAir Group and Greenpeace (AirVisual, 2019), it was reported that fifteen of the top 20 most polluted cities in the world are located in India.įigure 1: Top 20 polluted cities in the worldīy definition, air pollution is contamination of ambient air by chemical species in such concentrations and for such duration that is harmful to general health. In a country like India, where both population and economic development increased rapidly in past seven decades, air pollution has reached a stage where many cities in India are among the most polluted cities in the world.

It is ironic that we humans pollute the very air that we breathe in but our activities for progress and development that we desire and work for everyday has made air pollution an inevitable hazard.

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